SUPERBUGS: NEW WAYS TO DEFEAT BACTERIA Yolanda Devere
Scientists are
trying to find
new ways to
defeat bacteria
that can resist
antibiotics. /
Scientists have discovered new bacteria which resist the most powerful antibiotics. Doctorsfearthatunlessscientists find new ways to fight thesesuperbugs, it is only a matter of time before a newstrainof killer bacteriaappearsthat cannot be controlled.
Bacteria are the dominant form of life on Earth. There are more of them than any other creature. This is because theyare able tomultiply rapidly. They can changeto avoid a threatbefore it candefeat them.
Asingle bacteriumcan produce billions ofdescendants a day. If just one bacterium resists an antibiotic then it will multiply, and all its descendants will be resistant to the drug. They have been doing this for a long time. Bacteria which were resistant to penicillin, the first antibiotic drug, were found very soon after its introduction in the 1940s.
So fardoctors and scientists have always been able todevelopnew types of antibiotics that can defeat the new strains. But new bacteria have been discovered that can resist even the most powerful antibiotics. Scientists are investigating other ways they can resist these superbugs.
Onemethodis very simple: to make sure doctors use antibioticsless often. This will notpreventnew superbugsfrom developing, but it willslow downthe process. In Europe and the USAit is thought thatantibiotics areprescribedunnecessarily in a third of all cases.
Sometimes it is thepatients' fault. They demand antibioticsto treatall illnesses, even those caused by viruses. Antibiotics do not workagainstviruses.
Another method is to usecreamsinstead of pills. Applying an antibiotic cream just to the area of infection is better than taking a pill that kills all the bacteria in your body. There is less chance of resistant bacteria developing.
Another answer is an old idea that was abandoned after the power of penicillin was discovered. It uses bacteria's natural enemies - viruses known asbacteriophages. These ‘bug-eating bugs’ enter the bacterium and kill them. They are more effective than antibiotics in some animal studies.
Scientists in the former Soviet Republic of Georgia and Britain are looking at how to use them to treat infected humans. But even bacteriophages haveto be matched toexact types of bacteria.
The race is onfor scientists to find new waysto beatthese superbugs. These new superbugs don’t just give you asore throat. They can kill.
Bacteria Facts
● / On averagethey measure one or two millionths of a metre.
● / They multiplyby dividingin two.
● / Some can divideas fast asonce every 12 minutes.
● / They come in three types:spherical,rod-shapedorspiral-shaped.
● / They can live anywhere fromhuman skin- an average of 100,000 per square centimetre - toundersea volcanoesandeven in oil.
● / Some bacteria can kill: E. coli is a common cause offood poisoning.
READING COMPREHENSION ACTIVITY
Read the article again and find the answers to the following questions.
1.When was penicillin introduced?
______
2. What can doctors do to slow down the spread of superbugs?
______
3. What are bacteriophages?
______
4. How do bacteria multiply?
______
5. Which kind of bacteria commonly causes food poisoning?
______
GLOSSARY
fear:temen
unless:a menos que, si no
superbugs:organismo resistente a los antibióticos
strain:cepa (de bacteria)
appears:aparezca
are able to:pueden, tienen la capacidad de
to avoid a threat:a fin de evitar un peligro
defeatthem:combatirlas
single bacterium:sola (bacterium, singular; bacteria, plural)
descendants a day:descendientes por día
so far:hasta ahora
develop:desarrollar
method:método
lessoften:con menor frecuencia
prevent:impedir
fromdeveloping:que se desarrollen
slowdown:retardar el proceso
itisthoughtthat:se piensa que
prescribed:recetado / patients' fault:error del paciente
to treat:para tratar
against:contra
creams:cremas, ungüentos, pomadas
bacteriophages:bacteriófagos (virus que infectan bacterias)
to be matched to:ser compatibles con
theraceison:se ha largado la carrera
to beat:derrotar, vencer
sorethroat:inflamación de garganta
onaverage:en promedio
bydividing:dividiéndose
as fast as:tan velozmente como
spherical:esféricas
rod-shaped:tubular (en forma de bastón)
spiral-shaped:espiraladas
human skin:piel humana
underseavolcanoes:volcanes subterráneos
even in oil:hasta en petróleo
foodpoisoning:intoxicación alimenticia
ACTIVITY.
- Aprenderse las palabras del glosario, para ser utilizadas según el contexto.
- Consultar el vocabulario desconocido
- Al inicio está la página del texto, aprender a pronunciarlo y reconocerlo.
- Identificar los conectores y decir que tipo de conector es según el texto.
- Identificar las preposiciones y decir que tipo de preposición es según el texto.
- Del mismo texto sacar 10 frases en voz activa y pasarlas a voz pasiva.
Presentar el taller completo en hojas de bloc, pueden ser rayadas pero bien ordenado y legible.
VALE POR CUATRO NOTAS: PRESENTACION DEL TALLER, SUSTENTACION (QUIZ), PRONUNCIACION Y MEJORAMIENTO.
SE TOMA COMO REFERENTE EL QUIZ Y LA PRONUNCIACION. (70%)